Kael eeb



Feb. 3, 1931.

K. ERB 1,790,980

DECORTICATING AND DEPULPING MACHINE Filed May 17. 1929 IN VEN 7' 0/? KARL ERB ATfORNEY 7 5 of a very tough and leathery nature, diflicult only thinly coated with leathery tissue or- 10 jected to the decorticating action of rotary appropriately supported during therecipro- Patented Feb. 3, 1931 v i p r l UNITED STATES c.PArsN r -oFFijc KARL EBB, or FRAnkroRr-on-THE-ivrArN-GnIEsnEiM, GERMANY V Dmmmmm AND nnruLrrneivuicnnvn Application fil'e'd my 17(1929, seri ino. 363,835,: and in" e many septemberiaiszafi J I r The invention relates toimprovements in plants having extremely-tough skins machines fordeeorticating. the leaves of Yucexperiments haveshown that those sections cacaenas and Dracaenas and like fibre containof the leaves which extend along their cirr infgplants'which are known to have sklns cumferential edges andzwhich as "a rule are to decorticate." Y Y 7 rinds are not effectively attackedby the In the art of decorticating fibrous plants scraping drums and that the rinds- -cannot machines are known in which a relatively be completely removed. I attribute this long section of the leaves is at one stroke subdrawbackto the fact that the leaves are not scraping drums, the leaves being supported cative scraping and supporting action of the at their back by concave'blocks or breast drums and their counterdrums in as much plates surrounding a relatively large circumasthe latter present convex supporting faces :ferential area of thesaiddrumsand presentto each other. 1

1 mg to the latter a smooth or'ondulated sur- Decorticating machinesare known having g I .face. a leaf supporting member of relatively small 1 ;As a matter of fact in machines of this width when comparedwith the. circumfen type the fibres of the leaves of Yuccacaenas, ence of the stripping drum. Dracaenas and the like under treatment are s It has been common practice with machines 7- 20 liable to be excessively strained so as [to be of this.type(as known from U. S.,Pat ent e0 scraping drums.

' torn and brokeninto-relatively short strands 1,677,076) f-Wl1e11 used for decorticating the of little commercialvalue. 9 leaves of- Yuecacaenas and like fibre contain It has already been proposed to eliminate ing plants to feed the leaves in their longituthe risk of breaking the fibresby associating dinal e; fibre-direction downwardly into i drum in such manner vthat. the leaves-are drawingthem'upwardlyfl in their fibre 'jdi- 7 decorticated on both sides simultaneously reetion. V r -r j a whileonly a very narrow section of-the leaves Bythis manipulation of the leaves however is at one time subjected to the action of the valuable time is lost'i. e. whilethe leaves I i are withdrawn, resulting in a reduced outv7 However the provision or" two pairs; of put of the machine, and the leaves are liable scraping drums considerably increases the not to be cleanly decorticated. Attempts to cost of manufacturing decorticating maovercome-this'drawbackby feedingthe Yucchines of said typeand maintaining them in cacaena leaves in one directiongonlythrough repair and calls also for a ratherfcostly and thetreating space of the machine and by 80 complicated adjusting mechanism for conbringing the leaf supporting member nearer trolling the distance ofthe scraping drums to the-stripping 'drum,-thus reducing the from each other in view of the varying thickwidth of the treatingispace have failed in as ness of the leaves under treatment; Moremuch as the fibres .oftheleaves were over- 7 40 over with machines in which the leavesare strained and broken into short strandsof no 5 decorticat'ed; on both sides simultaneously commercial value. I by scraping drums cooperating with counter V invention aims at overcoming the scrapingdrums it is impossible in practice to drawbac is inherent to both kinds of decorticompletely and cleanly decorticate the leaves eating machines referred to above by proof Yucicacaenas and liket fibrej containing viding an improved leaf backing or support- 90 25 each of the scraping drums 'witha counterthe treating spaceiof the machine andwithing member of simple design which can be made at relatively low cost, and can be fitted into existing machines.

My experiments have shown that good results in decorticating Yuccacaena and kindred fibrous leaves'are obtained by using a leaf supporting member of relatively small width when compared with the circumference of the respective stripping drum, providing said leaf supporting member with ledges spaced from each other and projecting from its working face, and by cooperatively associating the leaf supporting member with the stripping drum in such manner. that the leaves can be introduced transversally to their fibre direction intothe treating space of the machine and are withdrawn therefrom in their fibre direction;

The nature and scope of the invention-are briefly outlined in the appended claimsand will be more fully understood by thefollowing specification taken together with the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. l is a side elevation of the stripping drum and the leaf supporting member of improved design. T

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the leaf supporting member cooperating with the stripping drum, shown in Fig.1, I

Fig. 3 shows a structurally modified leaf supporting member in front elevation.

Figs. 4 and 5 show "another structurally modified leaf supporting member in side and front elevation respectively.

Attention is drawn to the dot and dash lines in IIII, IIIIII, IVIV in Figs. 2, 3 and 5 indicating the po'sitionof the axis of the drums relatively to therespective leaf supporting members.

Referring to Figs-1 3 the stripping drum 1, adapted to rotate in the direction of arrow 1 is provided at its cylindrical face" with scraping knives 1, cooperating with a leaf supporting member 2. The latter is provided at its frontal face, opposed to the knives 1, with a plurality of projections 2" which'may be ledges, cams, ridges or the like, and which may be arranged in more or less oblique direction relatively to the axis of the stripping drum 1, as seen in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, or may extend parallel to said axis, as seen in Fig. 5.

.tion.

With the leaf supporting member shown in Fig. 3, the said projections 2 are arranged in diverging position relatively toeach other. The distance between the'knives 1 of the drum 1 andthe said'projections 2 preferably decreases gradually viz. following the direction of arrow X, in which direction the leaves Bare drawn out of the machine.

I prefer to v make the various individual projections of one and the same leaf supporting member of different width, and also to make the working face of each projection of varying width in their longitudinal direc- Referring to the structurally modified leaf supporting member, shown in Fig. 4, the latter is composed of a plurality of counterbeams 3, 3, which are preferably adjustably mounted on bracketsnot shownby means of screws 4, 4'. The said counterbeams 3, 3' are of polygonal cross section viz. presenting a plurality of edges at their frontal faces.

By means of screws 4, 4 the counterbeams 3, 3' may be. shifted towards or withdrawn from the stripping drums independently of each other, thus controlling the width of the working spaces, between the counterbeams and the drum.

My experiments have shown that by providing a plurality of' projections 2 at each abutment member or a plurality of counterbeams 3, 3' respectively the leaves are more uniformly and thoroughly decorticated and depulped by several successive operations.

Another important effect warranting the application of projections, cams,teeth, such as described above, lies in the fact that the working space,-viz. the distance between the drum and its leaf supporting member may be conveniently enlarged, which insures of the leaves being more gently and savingly treated in the decorticating and depulping operation and a maximum quantity of long valuable fibres being obtained.

It should be understood that various changes and modifications may be made in 'of the advantages referred to hereinbefore.

The leaf supporting member 2 shown in Fig. 1 may also be provided with adjusting means such as screws etc.for controlling the width of the working space between the drum and the abutment. i

What I claim is: g. r i 1. In a"machine'for; decorticating the leaves of Yuccacaenas, Dracaenas and like fibre containing plants the combination with a rotary stripping drum of a leaf supporting member of relatively small width when compared with the circumference of the strippingdrum, of'ledges which are spaced from each'other and are attachedto said leaf supporting member so as to project from the working face of the latter.

2. A leaf decorticating machine having the features outlined in'claim 1', in which the leaf supportingmember is composed of a plurality of sections, means beingprovided for adjusting eachsection independently of each other in their working position rela-- tively to the scraping drum.

3. A leaf decorticating machine having the features outlined in claim 1, in which the ledges of the leaf supporting member are v arranged in diverging position relatively to each other (Fig.

4. A leaf decorticating machine having'the features outlined in claim 1, in which the ledges of the leaf supporting member are arranged in inclined position relatively to the axis of the scraping drum (Fig. 2).

5. A leaf decorticating machine having the features outlined in claim 1, in Which'the ledges of the leaf supporting member are differently spaced apart from each other (Fig. 2). x

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

KARL ERB. 

